THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
(Oslo, Norway)

For Immediate Release

November 1, 1999

JOINT STATEMENT BY PRESIDENT CLINTON
AND PRIME MINISTER KJELL BONDEVIK

We share concern about the growing problem of trafficking in
women for the purpose of placing them into slavery-like conditions. This is
a problem worldwide, although trafficking in women within the OSCE area has
come more into focus recently. The need to address this issue in the Nordic-Baltic
region also arose as one of the recommendations of the Reykjavik conference
on Women and Democracy. We attach great importance to co-operation between
our two countries to focus on the need to combat this problem.

It is important to focus on the economic and social structures that give
rise to prostitution and sexual exploitation, and to find methods to empower
the women involved.

Norway is proposing to host a conference next spring on trafficking in the
OSCE area. The aim would be to (1) develop national and international policies
to combat trafficking and (2) to design and put into practice joint action.

The issue should also be addressed at the OSCE Summit in Istanbul. Norway,
in its capacity as OSCE Chairmanship, is actively considering the possibility
of an event focusing on trafficking on the margins of the Summit.